The Israeli government is exploiting the Pittsburgh murders to try to demonize Palestine solidarity

Ron Dermer on MSNBC following the killing of 11 Jews at a Pittsburgh synagogue.

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Yesterday during an interview on MSNBC, Ron Dermer, the Israeli Ambassador to the United States, placed the blame for the attack on both white supremacists and the “radical left,” which is clearly code for BDS activists.

“One of the big forces in college campuses today is anti-Semitism. And those anti-Semites are usually not neo-Nazis, on college campuses. They’re coming from the radical left. We have to stand against anti-Semitism whether it comes from the right or whether it comes from the left.”

This is a disgusting lie. But it is part and parcel with the recent push by the Israeli government and its supporters in the West to redefine the meaning of antisemitism to include criticism of Israel.

When faced the most blatant example of antisemitic violence imaginable, Dermer can’t bring himself to criticize the actual accomplices who made this violence possible. Donald Trump, who declared himself a “nationalist” earlier in the week, and the forces of white supremacy in this country have created the atmosphere where this type of violence is possible, even predictable. Yet during the MSNBC interview Dermer said Trump is to be praised for his statements on antisemitism, in no large part because the Trump administration has been a strong supporter of the rightwing Netanyahu government that Dermer represents.

This is where Israel finds itself in 2018. The same “nationalist” voices attacking George Soros and the “globalists” are also some of Israel’s greatest supporters in the U.S.

But it’s not just the Israeli government looking to use Pittsburgh.

Writing in the New York Times ADL head Jonathan Greenblatt did the same thing, equating the ideology behind the deadly attack on the 11 American Jews who were killed while praying with criticism of the state of Israel.

The both sidesism in this Greenblatt piece is a disgrace. Head of @ADL_National can't even bring himself to name the Republican party as the chief American exporters of anti-Semitic incitement. pic.twitter.com/gFvJr26Vv0

In light of today’s shooting in Pittsburgh, re-upping this thread. It is important to talk about how growing anti-Semitism and anti-Zionism are creating a toxic brew coming from both the fringe right & left. https://t.co/wABZqWSm8O

The murderous rampage at the Tree of Life synagogue had absolutely nothing to do with the struggle for Palestinian rights. And anyone who is telling you there is is shamelessly trying to use the murder of 11 innocent people to further their own racist agenda to dehumanize Palestinians and justify their ongoing oppression by the state of Israel.

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I watched this interview too, and true to form Dermer protected, and showed unwavering support for Trump, by not criticizing him even though Trump had mentioned there are nice people among the white supremacists, who chanted anti Jewish slogans in SC. Again it shows how selective zionist leaders can be in their outrage. Had this been Hamas or some other militant group, the bombs would already be raining over Gaza. Incidents of hate crimes against Jews and Muslims have risen in the US. The powerful zionist lobbies, and zionist officials from Israel, should be outraged, and fighting that, instead of pouring millions of dollar to fight the BDS movement. They politicize every damn thing.

EXCERPT:
“A crowdfunding campaign formed by two Muslim groups has raised more than $125,000 for the victims of the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting, which killed 11, the Times of Israel reported.”

“Muslim-American non-profits Celebrate Mercy and MPower Change were behind the campaign, ‘Muslims Unite For Pittsburgh Synagogue.’ It is also in partnership with the Islamic Center of Pittsburgh.

“The campaign reached its initial goal of $25,000 goal in six hours. As of press time, it raised $129,908 of its new $150,000 goal. The proceeds will help with funeral expenses and medical bills.

“’We wish to respond to evil with good, as our faith instructs us, and send a powerful message of compassion through action,’ the campaign reads. ‘Our Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, said: ‘Show mercy to those on earth, and the One in the Heavens will show mercy to you.’ The Quran also teaches us to ‘Repel evil by that which is better’ (41:34).”

EXCERPTS:
“Far-right politician Jair Bolsonaro is an Israel supporter and has promised to move Brazil’s embassy to Jerusalem”

“Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke with Brazil’s President-elect Jair Bolsonaro on the phone Monday and congratulated him on winning the election.”

“‘I am confident that your election will lead to a great friendship between the two peoples and to the strengthening of ties between Brazil and Israel,’ Netanyahu told Bolsonaro, according to a statement released by the Prime Minister’s Office. ‘We await your visit to Israel,’ Netanyahu added.

“Earlier, a senior diplomatic source said that as far as Israel is concerned, ‘Brazil will now be colored in blue and white,’ referring to the colors of the Israeli flag.

“Far-right politician Bolsonaro was elected president of Brazil, the world’s fourth-largest democracy, on Monday. The former army captain won garnered 55.7 percent of the vote.”

“In August, Bolsonaro announced that, if elected, he will close the Palestinian embassy in Brasilia in addition to moving his country’s embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Bolsonaro is a strong admirer and supporter of Israel.”

“Bolsonaro spent much of the campaign exploiting divisions, taking to Twitter to lambaste the rival Workers’ Party as unethical and dangerous. In recent weeks, Brazilians were bombarded with WhatsApp messages that condemned Workers’ Party candidate Fernando Haddad, often making outrageous claims.”

Richard Painter, who has over a half million Twitter followers, is using this as an opportunity to attack campus Palestine solidarity activists, even calling someone an anti-Semite for doubting the Times of Israel. He previously criticized Lorde over her concert cancellation.

From refusing to call Tree of Life a synagogue to saying the massacre should inspire Jews to immigrate to Israel, some responses from Israel have underscored how far apart we are….First, sending the ultranationalist Bennett to “comfort” mostly liberal American Jews rubs salt in the wound. Bennett, perhaps more than any other Israeli politician, has legitimized open racism against Arabs, sworn his opposition to a two-state solution with Palestinians, and moved the “Overton window” of Israeli nationalism far to the right. Thanks to his party, Jewish Home, comments that would have been too racist for polite conversation a decade ago are now routinely made on the floor of the Knesset.

“… Israel’s opposition leader, Avi Gabbay, said the attack should inspire ‘the Jews of the United States to immigrate more and more to Israel, because this is their home.’” …

Trust the Zionist monsters to exploit the slaughter of Jews in Pittsburgh. They’re panic stricken over the continuous decline in Jewish immigration, the accelerating emigration and of course, the ever increasing number of indigenous Palestinian Arabs between the River and the Sea.

Magh- Muslims and Jews coexist in France? Not really. (Could be that 99% of Muslims are willing to coexist even in France, but 1% refuse to coexist. How did you react to the Hyper Cacher killings? Dismissive, as I recall. Blamed Zionism for blowback as I recall.)

There was a quote in the FT a while ago about what Tony Judt thought about Zionism that included the line « the spectre of Arab terror » Something about a paranoid kind of Jewishness . That is Zionism for me . It’s also how I mostly think about your output.

I’m fascinated by the tone of how Squirrel Hill leaders responded to the savagery. It would not have happened in Israel

« The Torah teaches that every human being is made b’tzelem Elohim, in the image of God. This means all of us,” the leaders wrote. “In our neighbors, Americans, and people worldwide who have reached out to give our community strength, there we find the image of God.” »

The paranoid version of Jewishness rejects the notion of Muslims as part of the concept of b’tzelem Elohim.
This sane version of Jewishness makes Muslim and Jewish coexistence possible. Zionism does not.

Another thing I came across when reading about the notorious Ruth Bader Ginsburg , the Supreme Court Judge:

« In addition, she decorates her chambers with an artist’s rendering of the Hebrew phrase from Deuteronomy, “Zedek, zedek, tirdof”, (“Justice, justice shall you pursue”) »

The paranoid kind of Jewishness doesn’t believe in justice.

So maybe I should have explained it better. Judaism does have models for living in the world as equals. Zionism just isn’t one of them.

And I do understand where the paranoia comes from. I don’t think it should be fed to the kids.

I think the big issue is that you can’t have justice with settler colonialism. That is why Israel is on a different path of revenge ad Masada.

Zionist “peace” does not require justice or accountability or equality.

Zionist “peace” does require that Israel:
– remain a religion-supremacist “Jewish State”;
– keep as much as possible of what it has stolen, occupied and colonized;
– be absolved of its obligations under international law (incl. RoR); and
– be absolved of responsibility and accountability for its past and on-going (war) crimes.

Interesting article that reminded me of Zionism because of victimhood, irresponsibility and the notion of racial superiority

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/oct/30/trump-borrows-tricks-of-fascism-pittsburgh
The Nazis claimed a monopoly on victimhood. Mein Kampf includes a lengthy pout about how Jews and other non-Germans made Hitler’s life as a young man in the Habsburg monarchy difficult. After stormtroopers attacked others in Germany in the early 1930s, they made a great fuss if one of their own was injured. The Horst Wessel Song, recalling a single Nazi who was killed, was on the lips of Germans who killed millions of people. The second world war was for the Nazis’ self-defense against “global Jewry”

Hitler formulated his version of total irresponsibility after the disaster of the first world war, which destroyed the Habsburg monarchy and fragmented its German ally. He found an explanation for the disaster that spared the ego of the German nationalists who had supported it. The world was a struggle, Hitler maintained, among superior and inferior races. If superior Germans were somehow defeated in a war, this only proved that an invisible power stood behind the visible facts: global Jewry.

The attraction of the Nazi conspiracy thinking is that we can feel like victims when we attack.

I’m glad i don’t have a tv, so i am not tempted to watch fox news. I just watched a few minutes of naftali bennett and i normally hate him, but i accepted his solidarity. but bennett is a fan of trump and so therefore in the broader scheme he is probably still tomorrow’s enemy. a president who says, “there are good people on both sides” is a real danger and netanyahu and american jewish trump supporters have not caught up with the “good people on both sides” statement, but with pittsburgh, they have to catch up quick and it’s not clear that they will. because we cannot prove causality or the centrality of these particular dead, we are not sure if this is kishinev or just a leo frank lynch mob, an isolated incident. dermer doesn’t help us. bds is not the issue right now to most jews, pittsburgh and “good people on both sides” is the issue.

In the wake of this horrible shooting, Jonathan Greenblat of the ADL, was today also pushing the same trope as Dermer about attacks on the “Jewish State” (his words) on US Campuses. All the while implying anti-Semitic activity by BDS and social justice activists.

This shooting had NOTHING to do with Israel, but they sure are trying making it about Israel. They should, however, be very careful what they wish for, because Trump is very much an isolationist, and if he sours on Israel for any reason (and i can think of half a dozen), his stooges will follow suit and the GOP will fold like a house of cards on their support for the likes of Netanyahu and Co. rather than face the wrath of Trump’s radical base.

[For the latter part of the last two decades, the progressive and vocal leftist leadership of American Jewry, in their world of “enlightened” opinion, has shed no tears for the thousands and tens of thousands of Israeli Jews who have been murdered or wounded by the savagery of Palestinian Arab terror because in some way the Israeli’s were asking for it. Whether Netanyahu, or the Likud, or the so-called “occupation”; as far as they are concerned, the Jews got what they deserve. These progressive American Jews have excused Palestinian Arab terrorism against Israeli civilians for years again and again with no remorse or regret, thinking that there will never be a spill-over effect against Jews in other countries. They take it for granted that Israeli Jewish behavior or cruelty is the source of the primal rage against Jews in the Muslim world. Of course, the Jews are responsible in some way or another according to this mindset

This inexcusable need on the part of progressive leftist American Jews to ignore blatant and ever increasing anti-Semitism on the part of Palestinian Arabs and Muslims in general has directly contributed to the leap of anti-Semitic beliefs over the Atlantic from the Middle East to the American continent. According to the FBI anti-Semitic incidents accounted for half of religious hate crimes in the United States during 2014-2015 before President Trump was even elected and 11 % of all hate crimes in 2016. Why the silence in response to these terrifying statistics, could it be because Muslims are involved in perpetuating these hate crimes, could it be due to this occurring during Obama’s watch.]http://www.israelnationalnews.com/Articles/Article.aspx/22929

|| captADKer: [For the latter part of the last two decades, the progressive and vocal leftist leadership of American Jewry, in their world of “enlightened” opinion, has shed no tears for the thousands and tens of thousands of Israeli Jews who have been murdered or wounded by the savagery of Palestinian Arab terror … ||

Probably because they’ve been too distracted by the millions and tens of millions of non-Jewish Israelis and non-Jewish non-Israelis murdered or wounded by the savagery of Jewish supremacist (Zionist) terror.

|| … These progressive American Jews have excused Palestinian Arab terrorism against Israeli civilians for years again and again with no remorse or regret, thinking that there will never be a spill-over effect against Jews in other countries. … ||

Jewish supremacists (Zionists) have anti-Semitically…
– conflated Zionism and Israel with all Jews and all Jews with Zionism and Israel;
– claimed that the (war) criminal “Jewish State” acts in the name of and on behalf of all Jews; and
– suggested that all Jews are responsible for the actions of some Jews,
…again and again with no remorse or regret, thinking that there will never be a spill-over effect against Jews in other countries.

I wish to retract and apologize for the first half of my post dated October 30, 2018, 10:38 am. It was unnecessary snark in response to part of a post by captADKer. (I stand by the second half of my post.)

I also wish to retract my reply to TheBaker on October 30, 2018, 3:06 pm, as the above retraction renders the reply moot.

I have always found your comments to be passionate and consistent while I may not agree with many. Your retraction proves you have scruples as well.

Also: hate crimes against jews may be up in terms of vandals, threats and other nuisance crimes but physical attacks on Jewish Americans is not rising at all. The ADL doesn’t seem to want to disclose that part of the stats. And the bomb threats were the work Mostly of a disturbed Jewish Israeli teen (and one black radical journalist) which skews even those statistics of serious threats)

@captKedr
“For the latter part of the last two decades, the progressive and vocal leftist leadership of American Jewry, in their world of “enlightened” opinion, has shed no tears for the thousands and tens of thousands of Israeli Jews who have been murdered or wounded by the savagery of Palestinian Arab terror”

I appear to have missed all of this the news. Thousands and tens of thousands – wow ! Would be very grateful as I expect would other M`Weissers for some sort of resume/breakdown of these murders and woundings you know the standard kind of information dates,locations etc. I expect you have them to hand so am looking forward to a prompt response.

If this is accurate, the ‘tens of thousands’ remark by captKedr is not even remotely in the ball park. Israel wins the death and destruction sweepstakes by a mile. In terms of injuries to children Israel gets the gold medal.

It’s relevant to how the Arab world is slowly normalizing relations wth Israel despite the call to bds. By some figures, 20% of the Arab world now has some form of normalized diplomatic relations with the Zionist entity, mostly official while some still remain unofficial but no longer secret.

Absolutely the dictators, regimes and or long time rulers including the very few who allow some form of parliamentary representation. There are very few Arab nations that aren’t ruled by the aforementioned.

. I understand that the vast majority of Arab citizens from KSA to Egypt, Morocco, Lebanon and more hold extremely negative views of the zionist entity and unfortunately this extends to large percentages of Arabs holding negative views of Jews as well. Pew did a 2014 survey in Jordan which found Jordanian citizens held a whopping 99% negative view of both the zionist entity and Jews in general. They also found that Jordanians from all clans, palestinian, Bedouin, and primarily Muslim found the idea of Jewish sovereignty in any, all or part of the land west of the Jordan river intolerable. They want their leaders to cancel agreements that supply crucial water agreements, fuel and agricultural supplies that Jordans moribund economy desperately need. So deep is the citizens hatred of Israel that they would rather go without then deal with their arch enemy.
. Ironically, it is the powerful Bedouin tribes that have more leeway to pressure the. Hashemite Bedouin king as the palestinian majority is still discriminated against I terms of political power, job restrictions and in the case of the current kings father, outright murder of 1000s

But yes, the Israel government deals with the leadership and the business people, not the people on the streets.

This blog posted an article about an anti-semitic cartoon drawn by Netanyahoo’s son, I think, that white supremacists were gushing about. “What a bro!”, they enthused. I wonder if Dermer will also condemn this cartoon.

deaths of children is probably the best indicator of proportionality. presumably no combatants included in those numbers. did i miss the break out of children’s injuries, and combatant/non-combatant status? weaponry and tactics should be taken into consideration as well. a suicide bomber is beyond the pale, but supersonic jets shredding kids, not so much.

The point about Farrakhan is legit. He spews anti-Semitic hatred and Nation of Islam aren’t really Muslims, they’re a black nationalist movement. I knew a new immigrant from Algeria who accidently got caught up with them because he saw their sign in Oakland saying “Nation of Islam” and thought they were actual Muslims. He was in need and they took him in, gave him a job and a place to live and eventually he discovered that they were an organized crime gang. He was able to escape them but lived in fear of running into them on the streets of Oakland.

Why the left and leftist Jews don’t call them out for their shit is beyond me.

Dermer said “One of the big forces in college campuses today is anti-Semitism. And those anti-Semites are usually not neo-Nazis, on college campuses. They’re coming from the radical left. We have to stand against anti-Semitism whether it comes from the right or whether it comes from the left.”
Horowitz said “This is a disgusting lie”.
How so?
Only anti-semitic Lefties in denial mode could refute what Dermer has said in plain irrefutable English.

What’s this nonsense called ‘Palestinian solidarity’?
Hamas and Fatah hate each others’ guts.
The PLO in derangement has just voted to suspend recognition of the state of Israel and halt all commitments to the so-called ‘occupation authorities’ until Israel recognises a Palestinian state within the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital.
This is not solidarity – this is madness spurred on by desperation.

I too think that it is unlikely in the highest degree that Mr. Bowers, considering the sort of person he is, was motivated by – would have even ten seconds’ patience with – any idea about Palestinian rights. The real ‘newish anti-Semitism’ is the combination of angry rejection of Jews in our midst with fierce endorsement of Zionism and all its works – Soros very bad, Netanyahu remarkably good.
However, there will be copycats sharpening their claws and we can’t be sure that none of them will cite, even believe in, Palestinian rights. The wires cross in all sorts of ways. But Palestinian rights are there and cannot be ignored.

Dermer, Greenblatt and Ambassador Dani Dayan were on MSNBC on I believe Monday two days after the 11 elderly Jewish individuals were so brutally slaughtered. They all tried to link fact based efforts to shine the light on the government of Israel’s and illegal settlers violence on Palestinians on college campuses as anti semitic activities. If my memory does not fail me over the weekend and on Monday Andrea Mitchell, Alli Velshi, Nicole Wallace and a few other host used Greenblatt as the go to guy to report about the increase of anti Semitism in the country. Greenblatt, Dayan and Dermer all tried to spin activities on college campuses to inform the students and the public as ALL anti semitic.

Ambassador Danny Dayan was far more measured in his assessments .

Wonder why they have barely used the Southern Poverty Law Center’s stats on the growth of hate groups and hate crimes as a resource. SPLC does not seem to use collection of the increase of anti semitic activities to take down all efforts to bring attention to the racist, violent ways Israel has been and continues to oppress, kill and imprison the Palestinian people.

Wondering if Mondo will be going through ADL’s collection of alleged anti semitic activities on college campuses to see If any are just efforts to inform and organize categorized as “anti Semitism”

Just thought you folks needed to know in case others were having problems as well. By the way Annie I so respect what you have to say.

Having such an incredible time back knocking on doors of voters the last three months in Dayton Ohio where I am taking care of 90 year old mom who so does not want to be in nursing home. Go out for 2-3 hours almost everyday while she is napping. Trying like hell to “honor thy father and mother” He died four and a half years ago and was way ready to go. We all thought she (now 90) would be liberated after his passing instead she had a stroke one month after he passed and I have been taking care of her ever since. Yikes

Have run and helped run GOTV campaigns over the decades (when all in paper form) Now almost all digital and I am a turtle in that world. However picking some of the poorest neighborhoods in Dayton (lots of them) to walk, knock and talk with voters. Some of the scenes of boarded up homes, people who are working barely surviving on pathetic wages, worried about health care, day care are at times overwhelming. Shameful really shameful in the richest country on the planet.

Have been amazed how neither party has been talking much at all about raising the minimum wage. I also talk with lots of Trump voters (love it) and politely ask them where those good paying jobs are, those manufacturing come backs? We actually have really civil conversations. Lots more “help wanted signs” all over Dayton however pay scale is pathetic in a small city that used to have jobs at GM back in the 90’s paying $20.oo or more an hour.

good for you kathleen! what you are doing is so important. there’s no replacing going door to door. a lot of people are not part of the text world, that seems to be the way campaigns work nowadays. i remember pounding the pavement in some really deprived neighborhoods in richmond virginia. people were so appreciative and we spoke with so many. we really got out the vote, it’s so different than reaching people via social media too.

i took care of my mom (along with others) for the last few years of her life, would not have considered putting her in one of those homes. she passed in 2014, i miss her terribly. enjoy your mom while you can, once they are gone, that’s it. you’re lucky she’s still around.

I voted Republican in this election. I know that the Squirrel Hill shooter was a right winger (whatever that means) but he could just as easily have been from the radical left (with Keith’s views for instance). I actually would like for these immigrants from Honduras to be treated with compassion, dignity, empathy, and respect. I don’t see that happening with either party in power. I guess all things being equal I would rather pay less in taxes.

“You really don’t care for me Mooser, even though we are both members of the Jewish people.” “catalan”

I will believe you are Jewish when I hear it from Israel.
(And wouldn’t it be wiser for you to reserve judgement on me until you hear from Israel?)
If you can satisfy the Nation-State Law, okay. If not, you’re just another ‘ringer’ trying to get a piece of the action.

Sorry, “catalan”, but it’s not up to us anymore. There are much bigger issues involved now than whether or not we happen to feel Jewish, or were told we are Jewish.

“I will believe you are Jewish when I hear it from Israel.” Mooser
My DNA is being processed at ancestry right now. Takes a few weeks. We will see but my hope is that it will turn out that I am Turkish and Arab. Given all the insults I have gotten here I won’t be able to stop laughing if they were directed at an Arab.

There is no provision in the Nation-State Law for cheap DNA studies. (And they have no way of knowing who’s spit you sent in) Don’t you even know how “Jewishness” is determined?
Have you applied to Israel for “Jewish” status? Get a get from Israel, or admit you’re a fraud.

Synagogues everywhere are asking their communities to “FILL THE PEWS” this Shabbat.

The idea is that Jewish Americans, including those who don’t usually attend services, will make an effort to attend Sabbath services tomorrow as a gesture of community solidarity after the massacre in Pittsburgh.

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